Dough Boy

First Encounters

Dear Hendough,

The title of this letter refers not to your expanding size but rather our recent homemade concoction, thanks to Brook's post about making play dough.  I had been looking at several recipes already but couldn't decide on which to try and since Lily looked as if she were enjoying her mom's mix I went for it.  You love it, I have to make more, the first batch started getting sticky and less dough like so it ended up in the trash.  It was great to get out while I was making dinner and Dadoo was arriving home from work. 

Per Brook's suggestion, we played with it warm and cold from the freezer.  You liked making reports its temperature.  I gave you objects to poke, cut and shape it.  You smashed your face into it a few times as well as making it cover your hands.  You'd lift your iron fist and bring it down heavy stating,

"SMASH!"  You'd pinch little bits off and then kneed at it like an experienced masseuse working out the kinks of a tight muscle.  The stuff is super salty but you couldn't keep yourself from licking it only to give me a look like, "HOLY COW THIS STUFF IS REALLY SALTY, PLLLT!" and as if you couldn't believe just how salty you'd do it again and again until you caught on and then you started saying, "PLLLT salty!"  This will be a fun winter activity for certain.

 Dadoo had another mix for us to make.  It is a one to 2 ratio of water to cornstarch and a few squirts of food coloring.  Because cornstarch is such a finely ground flour if you hit it hard it crumbles but if you hold it in your hand it flows around like water!  It was wild stuff, but also very messy when it crumbles so we will try it outdoors next time.

Love, Mama